Phonograph-reproducer.



A. N. HERMAN. PHONOGRAPH REPRODUGER.

A?PLIOATION FILED SEPT. 18, 1909.

1,024,697. Patented Apr. 30, 1912. y

jig-

" UNITED STATES PATENT onmon.

vALEX.ANUEI N. PIERMAN, 0F NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, .ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- :ut.E1\r 1s,.To THOMAS a EDISON,

A coBroBATIoN .or NEW JERSEY.

mcoRPoRATED, or

PHonoGBArE-Rnrnonucnn.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER IN. Pinn- MAN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Newark, in the count-y of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Phonograph-Reproducers, of which the followin is a description.

1y invention relates to phonograph re# producers of the pneumatic type, or, generally speaking, of the type in which undulations corresponding to sound waves are impressed upon a current of any' suitable moving fluid by the operation of a suitable valve through which the liuid is allowed or caused to pass, the valve being operated 1n accordance with the sound waves as by connection with a reproducing stylus tracking a record groove. I filed in the United States Patent- No. 493,281 on May 1, 1909 in which I disclose andclaim .broadly a phonograph reproducer of this general type in which the valve or vibratory member or members were of minimum mass, whereby defects due to inertia and momentumof'parts are .largely avoided. In the thin, reed-like members are interposed in the path ofthe moving fluid current andare vibrated 'in accordance with sound vibrations to be reproduced to set up corresponding undulations in the moving fluid current passing through the sound box. Specifically, in the application referred to a port plate is provided having one 'or more slitlike ports therein upon which are seated the thin, reed-like members which are placed under tension and secured rigidly to'the port plate at both ends. These] members are joined together and exed by connection with the stylus to vary the extent y'of opening of the ports to a greater or less extent.

My present invention constitutes an improvement upon the invention o'f the appl-ication referred to, the improvement residing 'in the manner reed-like members upon the port plate.

The object of my inventionfis toimprove' the quality of sound reproduction of a device of this character.

Reference is hereby made to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which the same reference Specification of Letiiersvratent. Application led September 18, 1908.

'numerals are `used throughout to denote Olce an application'Serial application referred to,A

of mounting the elastic Th ,PatentedApn 30, 1912. Serialm. 518,415.

corresponding parts, and in wh1ch- 55 igure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of a sound reproducer embodying'my invention. Fig. 2"'is a plan view'of the port plate with the valve members secured thereto. Fig.v 3 is onlineB-S ofFi Referring to the drawings, the sound-box 1 may be formed with the two chambers 2 and 3 communicating through the portsl 4 in the port plate 5, air. being conducted into thev chamber 3 by meansof a conduit 6 and escaping from chamber' 2 through the reproducer neck 7. The chamber 3 iscl'osed by the closure 8 which is secured in position against the shoulder of the the chamber 3 by means'of the rlng 9 vwhich U tightly 1n posltion. The floating weight 11 1s pivotally mounted at 12 to the block 13 75 which is mounted as by screw 14 on the lower surface of the depending. flange .10. The stylus lever 15 is pivotally mountedat 16 tothe lugs 17 depending from the floatf i ing weight, 'and the 'said stylus lever is pros 80 vided withstylus 18. YAll of tioned parts are common. i

.The ports 4, which are preferably in th'e form of lengthened slits are normally closed by means ofthe flexible reed-like members 85 19 seated upon the same. Thesev members are very thin and preferably are formed of. a light metal such'a's aluminium. These the above meil- ;reeds are secured 'in position on the. port plate by the 'the strip following means Preferably, 20 is placed transversely across the of reeds 19 beyond on ports 4 and screws '21 are screwed Vthrough'the strip 20 and into theport plate f5, the Shanks of th .tween .the reed-like e screws extending bel members 19 and the heads of the screwseach overlapping one .of the-said reeds'1`9 each side of the same.' ese screws are'screwed, down tightly to secure the reeds 19 rigidly at that end of the said reeds. By this means a very secure connection is made which =is at the same time detachable. -It is, of course, obvious that members 19 might be secured permanently to the plate any other suitable means, as by-soldering the an enlarged cross section 60 circular. wall of 70 to the port plate 100 i 5 at-one end by 105 by iiexture in accord leo yunderstood that Ido not limit myself to the g nuancer same at that end to the port plate. ht the other end of' the reeds 192 screws 22 are screwed in to the port plate .3 in the same relation to the reeds 19 as are the screws 21 at the other endof the same, that is to say, each reed 1S) has one screw 22 on each side of the same, the heads `23 of the screws 22 each overlapping one of the said reeds i9. on each side of the same. Screws 22, however, are not screwed in sufficiently far to bind reeds 19 rigidly ,to port plate 5 at their end of the reeds. Instead, screws 22 are so adjusted that reeds 19 may slip or move somewhat longitudinally under heads' 23 of screws 22 when the said reeds 19 are iiexed.

Stylus 18 is connected to reeds 19 by any suitable means, as the link 2li, which is connected at its lower end to the tail of stylus lever 15, and at its upper end to the reeds 19. Preferably, reeds 19 are fastened together as by means of. strip 25 which is soldered or otherwise secured to the same transversely of the same midway between screws 21 `and 22. Link 24 is secured to this strip 25. I prefer to use the construction shown in the drawings in which link 24 passes through a hole in strip 25 and is provided on the upper side thereof with a button or. head 26 so that the upward movement of stylus 18 in tracking the record groove pulls the reeds 19 downwardly at their central points, the pressure o air or other fluid passing from chamber 3 through ports Il into chamber 2 tending to constantly keep the reeds 19 flexed upwardly. a In the operation of the device, reeds 19 operate entirely ance with the sound vibrations to be reproduced, the reeds being held rigidly at the 4one end and slipping slightly forward and back under screw heads 23 at the other end, the reeds flexing symmetrically under the opposing forces of the current fluid and the central pullof the link 24 on the same.. y

It is obvious that the proportions of parts as shown could be changedwithout departing from the spirit of the invention, and that,.if desired, the direction of flow ofthe fluid could be reversed and the valve seated upon the opposite side of port plate 5 from that lindicated with appropriate connection to the stylus lever, and that also, if desired, the reed-like members could be seated upon the lower side of port plate 5 instead of upon the upper side as indicated in the drawings.

Where, members seated upon and corresponding reeds may be used, the loudness of the sound reproduced varying with the number of reeds employed.

Having now described my invention, what I claim and desire'to protect by -Letters Patent is as follows;

i.. In a sound reproducer, the combination of a hollow body containing chambers communicating through a .members of elastic material seated upon and covering said ports, means for holding rigidly one extremity of said members, means located at the other extremity et said members for preventing all except longitudinal movement of said extremity, and permitting longitudinal movement, and means for flexing the said members in accordance with sound vibrations, substantially as described.

2. In a sound reproducer, the combination of a hollow body containing chambers communicating through a port, a member of elastic material seated upon and covering said port, means for holding rigidly one extremity of said member, means other extremity of said member for restricting all movement of said extremity to move-- ment in the plane normally occupied by said member and means for flexing said 'member in accordance with sound vibrations, substantially as described.

3. In a sound reproducer, with a sound box and means for conveying a fluid therethrough, of a vibratory thin strip interposed in the path of vsaid fluid and held rigidly at one end, means located adjacent the other end of for restricting all said strip movement of said end to movement in the plane normally occupied by said strip, and means for flexing said strip in accordance with sound vibrations produce corresponding undulations in said fluid, substantially as described. f

4C. In a sound reproducer, the combination with a sound box and means for conveying a fluid therethrough, of a vibratory thin strip interposed in the path of said iiuid, means holding said strip rigidly at one en'd, means vlocated adjacent the other end of said strip for restricting all movement of said strip to movement longitudinal of said member, and means acting upon said strip substantially midway between said holding and re stricting means 'for causing the same to flex in accordance with sound vibrations to be reproduced, to produce corresponding un# dulations in said scribed. 4

5. In a sound reproducer, the combination in the claims, I have referred to the ports, it is to be seating of the members upon the upper surface of the port plate merely.' Y A The valve as constructed is exceedingly sensitive and copies the vibrations ofl the undulations therein by its stylus with lamplication and with` greatA permitting slip of said liexible means at oney faithfulness, Any desired number of ports end thereof in a fluid therethrough, of iiexible means inter- .the plane normally ooeuple plurality of ports,

located at the' with a ksound box and means for conveying the combination y to be reproduced, to

fluid, substantially as de .posed in the path of said liuid for producing Y flexure, means d ISO by said flexible means, but4 preventing all other movement of said end, and means for. iiexlng the sald iexlble means 1n accordance ,v

with sound vibrations, substantially as described. A

6. In a sound reproducer,the combination With'a'port plate provided With a port, of a thin flexible strip seated upon and covering said port, means holding said strip adjacent the ends constructed to permit longitudinal movement of said strip past said holding means during Hexure but to prevent all other movement of said strip adjacent its ends, and means for flexing said strip in accordance With sound vibrations, subst-antially as described.

7. In a sound reproducer, the combination i with a port -plate provided with a port, of a thin reed-like member of elastic material, seated upon and covering said port, means for sccuringsaid member rigidly at one end, means for preventing the lifting of the other end of said member from its seat but permitting longitudinal movement thereof past said preventing means, and means for flexvibrations, substantially as described.

, 8. In a sound reproducer, the combination for `securing said member rigidly at one end,

a headed body inserted in sald port plate adjacent the other end of said member and having its head bearing upon said member with suiicient force to prevent lifting of the same from its seat, but to permit longitudinal movement thereof under said head, and meansfor flexing said member 1n accordance -With sound vibrations, substantially as de# scribed.

This specification signed and witnessed this 16th day of September 1909.

ALEXANDER N. PFERMAN.

Witnesses:

DYER SMITH, JOHN M. CANFIELD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents cach, by addressing the Coinniissioner of .Patenta- Washington, D. C.

25 ing said member in accordance with sound j 

